Mark Russell

With a style that owed a lot to vaudeville -- using sheer enthusiasm to blow past limited piano and singing skills -- Mark Russell playfully roasted politics and pop culture for over 60 years. Setting up shop at Washington DC's Shoreham Hotel in the 1960s, Mark came from an era in which a politician could take a joke and he gleefully doled them out, often on one of his regular PBS television specials or as a special guest on Good Morning America or as a co-host on Real People in the 1980s. Find more Mark Russell clips below, and thanks for sharing our shows.

 

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Mark Russell got his comedy inspiration from the newspaper which kept his act fresh. This is a good example. When Libyan strongman Muammar Gadaffi announced he was imposing a 'line of death' it sent military strategists and international political analysts scrambling for a policy response. It sent Mark to his trusty piano for his more tuneful response. https://youtu.be/oZczL-P_5Ps

 

Mark's satire was often more playful than pointed which led to him being satirized by Saturday Night Live in this clip from 1986.https://youtu.be/Pk5AAHvb71Y

 

Mark Russell tried retiring in 2013 -- but he couldn't resist being a musical smartass and unretired shortly thereafter. This clip, from 2018, has Mark giving his patented "Old McDonald" treatment to the then-current White House occupant. And we can add Mark to our "comedy keeps you young" list -- this show was recorded when he was 86! https://youtu.be/hGXp-xkpfIg